Cobourg, ON Indie Celtic Folk Duo Lo & the High Road Launch Kickstarter for Sophomore Album 'Standing Stones,' Announce 'Lanterns in the Mist' Tour

Cobourg, ON Indie Celtic Folk Duo Lo & the High Road Launch Kickstarter for Sophomore Album 'Standing Stones,' Announce 'Lanterns in the Mist' Tour

Lo & the High Road, the Cobourg based Indie Celtic folk project of Lauren Halász and Colin McMahon, have opened a Kickstarter campaign to fund the vinyl and CD pressing of their sophomore album, 'Standing Stones,' targeted for release in early fall 2026. The campaign arrives as the duo heads out on the road for their "Lanterns in the Mist Tour," bringing their latest single and a catalogue steeped in fantasy, folklore, and nature to stages across Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada.

Halász (songwriting, lead vocals, bodhrán, Irish whistle) and McMahon (songwriting, production, guitar, mandolin, bouzouki) have spent the past several years building a devoted following of more than 200,000 fans who turn to their music for tabletop role playing soundtracks, woodland weddings, and Renaissance faires alike. Their 2023 debut, 'Jackalope Tales (& Other Stories),' has surpassed 2.5 million streams on Spotify, weaving three traditional songs with six originals into a record centred on growing up, resilience, and childhood wonder.

That same sense of myth carried into 2025's "Lanterns in the Mist," a single that follows a child spirited away by fairies, a story Halász has said appears across cultures worldwide, sometimes as a warning and sometimes as a rescue. She has described writing the song as a way of finding a space between worlds to rest.

'Standing Stones' extends that world building across a thirteen-track collection, pairing the band's originals with traditional pieces from Ireland, Scotland, and Canada. The album folds in previously released singles "The Fawn & the Huntress," featuring Lunar Bloom, and "Dance of the Dryads," both drawn from Greek mythology, alongside new songs like the title track, "Salem," and "The Weaver." Guest artists Christine Rabey (vocals), Jordan Baldwin (violin, viol, vocals), Saskia Tomkins (nyckelharpa), and Steáfán Hannigan (uilleann pipes, bodhrán, Irish flute) join the record, with cover art once again designed by Abbey Komes, who previously created the artwork for "The Fawn & the Huntress" and "Lanterns in the Mist."

The Kickstarter serves both as a pre-order for physical copies and a way for fans to support the album's completion, with all backers acknowledged in the CD and vinyl insert. Supporters can also pick up existing merchandise through the campaign while the band finishes the album's remaining tracks ahead of its fall release.

Fans can catch Lo & the High Road live throughout the summer as the "Lanterns in the Mist Tour" makes its way across the country.

Lo & the High Road Tour Dates

• July 23, 7:00 PM – Bar le Ritz PDB – Montréal, QC
• July 24, 7:00 PM – Robo Lounge – Ottawa, ON
• July 25, 7:00 PM – The John at Sadleir House – Peterborough, ON